The Mightiest Badger at Hogwarts

The Hog's Head Pub is located in a remote corner of Hogsmeade.

As soon as Harry and others arrived here, they understood why this small bar was called the Pig's Head Bar.

The wooden board that serves as the store's signboard is hung on a rusty bracket on the door. There is a cut-off pig's head painted on it, with blood stains soaking through the white cloth wrapping it.

Seeing this scene for the first time, the Harry trio had an ominous premonition.

They didn't think a bar with such a weird sign would get much business, especially since it was in such a remote location.

And when they actually entered the bar with an uneasy mood, this idea became even stronger.

Because the interior of the Pig's Head pub is completely different from the Three Broomsticks pub in Hogsmeade village.

The big bar in the Three Broomsticks always makes people feel bright, clean and warm, but the Pig's Head Bar only has a small, dark and very dirty room, and the whole room exudes a strong smell of sheep. Smell.

The few bay windows on the walls were covered with thick dirt, barely letting in any light, and some candles were lit on the rough wooden tables.

The most outrageous thing is that the floor in the bar, which was supposed to be paved with stones, can no longer see the shadow of any stone at all.

The dirt accumulated over the centuries has raised the ground level by more than ten centimeters!

However, when Harry suppressed his nausea and lifted his feet from the slightly sticky 'floor', he unexpectedly discovered that there was this 'original' medieval style bar. Many customers.

For example, the weirdo at the bar has his entire head covered in gray and black bandages, but he can still drink cup after cup of smoking, burning things through a gap in the bandage on his mouth.

There were also several hooded figures sitting at the table next to the bed.

Or the old witch with the pointed nose by the fireplace.

……

The three Harrys were keenly aware that as soon as they entered, all these people stopped what they were doing and looked at them with strange, unkind eyes.

Obviously, this was caused by the school robes the three of them wore.

Of course, it may also be because the three of them are not as weird as the group of people in the bar now.

After all, when a normal person enters an environment full of weirdos, that normal person becomes the weirdest person among them.

Being watched by so many eyes, Harry felt that his body had become much stiffer.

His forehead was constantly sweating, which diverted his attention to a great extent and made him no longer pay so much attention to the poor hygiene environment around him.

On the contrary, the two brothers George and Fred performed very well here.

They greeted everyone in the bar very naturally.

He even secretly drank the wine in his glass while greeting the bandaged man.

This scene made the hairs on Harry's body stand on end.

He felt that the next moment the bandaged man might angrily take off the bandages on his body, and then reveal his mummy-like face and swallow George and Fred in one gulp.

To Harry's surprise, however, the bandaged man didn't seem angry about the drink.

Not only that, the other party even chatted and laughed with George and Fred for a while, and then pressed the reminder bell in front of him to indicate that he needed another drink.

"Don't put on that expression, Bud is a good man!" Fred returned to the team and whispered to the three Harrys, "He was cursed and disfigured while trying to save his teammates during a ruins expedition. , the counter-curse of this ancient curse has long been lost, so now he can only wear a bandage all day long, and does not dare to go to a normal bar, so he can only stay in the Pig's Head Bar to have fun.

Most of the guests at this bar had similar experiences and were not bad people.

So quickly adjust your expressions and eyes.

You are making them feel very uncomfortable! "

Harry and the other three were shocked when they heard this.

They didn't expect that this would be the case.

But if you think about it carefully, it actually makes sense.

After all, Hogsmeade is the only pure wizarding village remaining in the entire country, and it is also close to Hogwarts.

The Ministry of Magic will not allow any dark wizards to gather in such a key location.

It's just that under such a bad situation, the Harry trio's expression management ability has basically gone out of control.

Therefore, they could only lower their heads lower so that the customers around them could not see their faces.

George and Fred were a little helpless when they saw this, so they could only keep explaining to the surrounding customers.

Fortunately, the bar owner finally stepped out of a back door at this time.

He was a grumpy-looking old man with a lot of long gray hair and a beard.

He was tall and thin, and from the outline of his face, which was mostly obscured by a thick beard, Harry always felt that this man looked very familiar.

"Why did you drink so fast, you damn ugly thing?"

The bar owner said angrily to the bandaged man.

This made Hermione raise her head suddenly and glare at the other party angrily.

Even before.

Now that we know the story of the bandaged man, what the bar owner just said seems to be too much.

This look was undoubtedly noticed by the bar owner.

He just glanced at George, Fred and the others, and then he understood what was going on. Without saying anything more to the bandaged man, he directly made another glass of the same drink.

That wasn't the end yet, he quickly got back into the back room.

When he came out again, there was a huge wooden box in his arms.

The expressions of the three Harrys instantly turned ugly.

Because the entire surface of the wooden box was covered with a thick layer of dust, and there were many pitted rat teeth marks. In some places, the teeth marks were so deep that the butterbeer inside could even be seen directly through the gaps.

And these are obviously the 'immediate goods' that George and Fred mentioned before!

puff--

The wooden box was placed on the bar, which was also covered with a layer of grease, and made a muffled sound.

The bar owner clapped his hands and said:

"Old rule, three gold galleons."

The price of a bottle of butterbeer is two silver coins, and there are 24 bottles in a box. In other words, the total should be 48 silver coins, but the boss in front of him wants to charge a full 51 silver coins. But, it can be said to be quite a trap.

However, considering the even more exaggerated selling price of these butterbeers after brothers George and Fred transported them back to Hogwarts, it is not unacceptable.

"Boss, we are not here to purchase goods this time."

George and Fred said to the boss mysteriously, "We would like to borrow the Floo network fireplace in your store."

The bar owner glanced at George and Fred and said calmly:

Gu</span>“No.”

"Why?" George suddenly opened his eyes and said, "We have been partners for so many years! Are you not willing to help even with this little help?"

"First of all, the business between us cannot be called a cooperation at all. If we insist on pursuing it, you should thank me for seeing you pitiful, so I gave you a chance to make money." The bar owner said calmly, "Secondly, It's still class time, right? Even if Hogwarts students skip class and go hang out in Hogsmeade village, they still want to run outside? Do you really think you are awesome?

Finally, and most importantly, there is no Floo fireplace in my bar. "

After the bar owner finished speaking, the surrounding guests burst into laughter, and the entire bar was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

George and Fred were so angry that their faces turned red, and they turned around to leave with the Harry trio.

But just as they turned around, the bar owner grabbed them by the scruff of their necks.

"Why go? You two brats are really getting better and better, and you have even learned how to kidnap lower grade students!" The bar owner's eyes suddenly became stern, "Where do you have to prepare for today? Do it. What? Explain everything clearly, otherwise don’t blame us for being rude!"

As soon as the bar owner finished speaking, the two hooded guests in the corner and the old witch by the fireplace stood up.

They separated the Harry trio directly from George and Fred.

When George and Fred saw this scene, they immediately became angry and yelled:

"We are not traffickers! We really have important things to do!"

The Harry trio finally understood what was going on.

They really didn't expect that the people in the bar would think about human trafficking. Hermione couldn't help but explain:

"What George and Fred told the truth, we were not trafficked!"

"Oh? Really?" the bar owner said unmoved, "Then tell us your 'important' things."

"This matter is very important. It affects the life and death of the entire Hogwarts. I can't talk about it in front of so many people!"

George said angrily, but what greeted him was even more fierce ridicule from those around him.

Fortunately, the bar owner seemed to believe what they said and continued:

"Then you come in with me and talk alone. If things make sense, then I will let you go. But if I find out that you are lying, then... haha, you want to come to me to find trouble, but you are sent to Azkaban. It’s not like people have never experienced it.”

After saying that, the bar owner took George and Fred to the back door, and the Harry trio also followed. The guests who were protecting them did not stop them.

Behind the bar is obviously where the boss lives.

This place is much cleaner than the bars outside, but it definitely can't be called clean.

The randomly placed furniture and wine bottles are the best proof.

The cleanest place in this room is probably the innermost wall.

There is a magical portrait of a girl hanging on that wall. The girl in the painting is wearing a blue dress. Although she seems to be smiling, there is a deep melancholy in her smile.

The bar owner probably took the painting down and wiped it down from time to time. The painting and the walls around it were all spotless.

"Tell me, what the hell is going on here?"

The bar owner said, sitting on a dirty sofa.

Hearing this, George and Fred looked at each other in confusion, and finally gritted their teeth and told most of the things they knew.

Of course, they did a lot of rationalization in order to make this matter understandable and acceptable to ordinary people.

"So, what you are saying is that Dumbledore and his henchmen are very likely to be besieged by Voldemort and Death Eaters in the Ministry of Magic." The expression on the bar owner's face was extremely strange, "And now they control Hogwart The person who died was a young man named Link. Maybe this young man wanted to completely seize control of Hogwarts, so he deliberately delayed time and did not save Dumbledore? "

Just seeing the bar owner's expression made the Harry trio's hearts sink.

Ron complained painfully:

"George, Fred, what you said is really outrageous! Although this is what it is, but... alas! I knew no one would believe it! I..."

"No, I believe it."

Before Ron finished speaking, the bar owner said calmly.

Hearing this, Ron, the three of them, George and Fred were stunned.

But the bar owner continued:

"So you are now going directly to the Ministry of Magic to save Dumbledore and the others, right?"

George and Fred nodded blankly, before they could react from their dazed state.

"Then don't waste any more time. I'll go with you." The bar owner pulled out his wand expressionlessly, "Come on, grab me and I'll take you to the Ministry of Magic."

"But... why?"

George said with a confused look on his face.

The behavior of the bar owner in front of him was so abnormal that it made him instinctively wary.

He even thought of words like trafficking just like the previous customers and bar owners.

After all, the black market prices for young wizards of their age in Knockturn Alley are quite outrageous.

The bar owner was not used to it. He snorted coldly and said:

"Whether you want to go or not! If you don't want to be with me, then get out."

As he spoke, the bar owner started waving his magic wand.

The space around him soon became distorted.

Seeing this, Harry gritted his teeth and reached out to grab the bar owner's shoulder.

"Harry!"

Ron and Hermione exclaimed when they saw this, and grabbed Harry.

Next came George and Fred.

crackling—

After a burst of firecrackers exploded, Harry and the others disappeared instantly.

When they got down to earth again, they found themselves in a dark alley.

The innermost part of the alley is a mountain of garbage, and several wild cats are searching for food on the garbage mountain.

The appearance of Harry and others made their hair stand on end, and they screamed and fled out of the alley.

Looking in the direction they left, it turned out to be a busy road.

On the other side of the road, a flash of bright red caught Harry's eyes instantly.

It was a slightly shabby red phone booth!